When You're Feeling Sad
by Leveragelover
Summary: As cliche as it is, Nate can always help keep her nightmares away.


**Well this turned out longer then expected. It's mostly about Sophies nightmares rather then her with Nate…but I just wanted to write something quick so I could get my 100****th**** story up soon ;) I don't own Leverage! **

_When You're Feeling Sad_

The fear curls up her stomach like the rising of fog until it clogs her throat and turns to stone. The world is sinking slowly. Literally. As she tries to outrun the subuction of the earths crust it only seems to move faster. She's slipping in the mud as rain hammers down on her skin and whistles through the swaying branches. The sky above is grey and chilling and the ground below her feet is filling with water. Houses she passed by just minutes ago are now filling up with water. She runs faster. It seems to stop. Her feet slip out from under her and she falls face first onto the pavement. She lifts her head and spits out the mud and grass, pointlessly wiping away the mud on her face with her muddy hand.

She's yanked up by cold hands and is thrown against the wall that appears behind her. The dream of the world sinking has vanished. Possums and rats are swarming around her feet, looking at her with their beady eyes and slapping their naked tails like a whip against the air. She screams. Now she's running out of a dark alleyway into the streets of her hometown. People are swarming the street as it it were a bustling Sunday afternoon at the farmers market. She catches the face of her birth father and the familiar glint of a gun in one hand and a pan in another.

Sophie wakes up with a jolt. Her eyes fly open, gasping sharply as the dream world is pulled from her. She shakes from the vivid dreams of the nightmare, and grasps at her hair and wishes for the thoughts to go away. The darkness only encourages them to reappear. Nates sleeping with his back facing her, and she decides now would be the best time to creep out and go try and calm her mind. She slips from bed and tiptoes out of the room silently as to not wake Nate.

It's chilly downstairs - when she finally gets down there with all her stumbling and cursing through the dark - and she pulls the long sleeves of her shirt over her hands and hugs her body. Small strips of lights are streaming through the curtains covering the window, illuminating the room with dim light. She sat down below the window looking out over the street and sighed.

She sat there for 5 minutes.

10 minutes.

15 minutes.

20 minutes.

... minutes

The time was lost as she slowly drifted back into sleep. She is standing by the ocean, it's cold black waves slapping against the sandy beach. Wind picks her hair up and sends it dancing around her head. She walks down the beach towards a small shack she sees, pieces of shell jabbing themselves into the bottom of her feet.

Rain starts to hail down on her. The waves rise higher.

The door to the shack is open and swinging widely on it's hinges. She runs over to it, ignoring the pain that is in her feet. It takes both her hands to get it shut. The pounding wind and rain rattle the tiny shack mercilessly, and Sophie shrinks back over to the small chair in the corner next to the window. Her feet are dripping blood onto the floor and her tears are flowing down her face and neck. Something catches the corner of her eye and she turns just in time to see Parker pounding on the window with her fists. Her name comes out in a mixture of worry and confusion, but only just before she's blown backward by the wind and into the splenetic waves.

She screams. Her own fists are pounding against the wall. She tries the door. It's locked.

When she turns back to the window she sees Hardison get eaten by the black waves. Her throat is becoming dry and her tears puffy from crying. She kicks and screams. Eliot's swept into the waves. Sophie tries to break the window, but to no avail.

Nate's next.

She tries harder to escape.

The house shudders violently and groans and creaks. Cracks appear in the window. And suddenly the house is thrown into the water.

Her eyes fly open as she feels water splash over her face and a glass falls on her arm and then onto the floor. It's an unpleasant awakening and she jerks in response. Tears seep out of her eyes as the dream replays in her mind. Even in the growing light of dawn she can't erase the images of the people she loves dying. She gets up from her place curled up next to the coffee table and wipes the water off her face. Her bodies colder then it was before she had fallen asleep by the window and she hugs herself tight.

Nates sleeping on her side of the bed when she gets in the room. The sheets are twisted by his feet, arms splayed in front of him. She grabs her blanket off the floor and pulls it over both of them as she snuggles close to his chest. He stirs at the movement, making a noise that doesn't quite sound like a word, but she knows he's saying her name, tongue too swollen with sleep to form the word. His eyes open half way and he looks down at her, mumbling something that sounds like where we're you.

"Nightmare," she whispered.

Her cold hands press against his side, leaving goosebumps behind. He sighs deeply and nuzzles his face in her hair. "You wanna talk?"

"I can't stop thinking about it. You all died in front of me and I can't stop picturing it. Help me forget about it?"

"Are you comfortable?"

She shifted in his arms. "Yeah."

"Close your eyes and try to keep your mind blank. Then just let yourself feel the song...don't think."

Sophie snorted at the words coming from him, but did as she was told. Her mind cleared quickly as she listened to the thump thump of his heart. She breathed deeply against him and felt her inner peace settle.

_"Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens_

_Bright copper kettles and warm woolen mittens_

_Brown paper packages tied up with strings_

_These are a few of my favorite things." _

She was surprised by his smooth, but not too deep, voice.

_"Girls in white dresses with blue satin sashes_

_Snowflakes that stay on my nose and eyelashes_

_Silver white winters that melt into springs_

_These are a few of my favorite things_

_When the dog bites_

_When the bee stings_

_When I'm feeling sad_

_I simply remember my favorite things_

_And then I don't feel so bad." _

He let out a deep breath as he finished the song. It was the first time he had ever sang in front of her...in front of anyone really. It felt nice.

"You have a pretty voice," She mumbled through her sleep filled mouth. Nate couldn't help but share his own victory smile with himself. He continued to hold her as she slept curled up next to him. The steady breath against his chest slowly lulled him into his own sleep where dreams played and the nightmare stayed away.

**THE END**


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